Remove the posts and pages from the album and paint the covers and spine ivory. Let it dry. Coat with a sealer and let dry (this will help to keep the paint from chipping or pulling away from the album.) Apply black ink to the edges.

Ink the edges of the gold diamond 8"x8" paper and glue to the front cover. Glue the solid gold to the back cover. Cut a 5 3/4”x5 3/4” rectangle from the gold “12 days of Christmas” paper and ink the edges black. Mat with red cardstock, leaving a 1/8” wide border. Secure red mini brads at each corner and glue to diamond paper.

Journal on the gold paper book plate “Christmases Past” and glue 1/4” from the bottom edge of the rectangle. Crop a photo to 2 3/4”x2 1/4” rectangle and mat with ivory cardstock, ink the edges and glue as shown. Make a bow from red ribbon and Zot™ under the photo.

Assemble the album with the pages and posts and wrap red ribbon at the binding edge. Tie a bow and glue a gift tag cut-out under the bow. Punch 1/4” red circles and glue to the top of the album posts.

Page:

Mat a 4”x6” photo with black cardstock, leaving a 1/8” wide border. Secure a red poinsettia with a standard gold brad as shown. Glue the photo 1/2” from the top of the gold striped paper as shown.

For the border: Cut a 1 1/2”x8” black cardstock strip. Glue a 3/4”x8” strip of gold dot paper to the center. Mat one long edge of the black paper with a torn strip of red and glue to the bottom of the gold striped paper. Use red ribbon to make a bow and glue to the center of the border.

Journal the year and info on the large gold tag and ink the edges. Glue the tag, stocking brad, cut-outs and small poinsettia down the right side of the page as shown.

Special savings and creative ideas for decorating Artist Trading Cards.

LeNae Gerig

LeNae's Tip:For a great gift idea, collect photos representing Christmas in years past. One photo per Christmas will do, or if you can’t find a photo for every year select photos that sum up particular traditions like selecting the family tree, decorating the tree, marathon gift wrapping and, of course, leaving cookies for Santa. When gathered together in one place, you can stop and appreciate your family traditions and how everyone has changed over the years.